On the formation time scale of massive cluster ellipticals based on deep near-IR spectroscopy at z~2

TL;DR

This study uses deep near-IR spectroscopy of a z=2.16 galaxy cluster to constrain the formation time scale of massive ellipticals, revealing they formed rapidly between redshifts 3 and 4, which challenges current simulations.

Contribution

It provides new observational constraints on the rapid formation of massive quiescent galaxies at high redshift using deep spectroscopic data.

Findings

Massive quiescent galaxies formed within ~0.5 Gyr between redshifts 3 and 4.

Quiescent galaxies at z=2.16 show a weak red sequence and spectral features confirming their quiescent nature.

The short formation time scale is not reproduced in recent numerical simulations.

Abstract

We present improved constraints on the formation time scale of massive cluster galaxies based on rest-frame optical spectra of galaxies in a forming cluster located at z=2.16. The spectra are obtained with MOIRCS on the Subaru telescope with an integration time of ~7 hours. We achieve accurate redshift measurements by fitting SEDs using the spectra and broad-band photometry simultaneously, allowing us to identify probable cluster members. Clusters at low redshifts are dominated by quiescent galaxies, but we find that quiescent galaxies and star forming galaxies co-exist in this z=2 system. Interestingly, the quiescent galaxies form a weak red sequence in the process of forming. By stacking the spectra of star forming galaxies, we observe strong emission lines such as [OII] and [OIII] and we obtain a tentative hint of AGN activities in these galaxies. On the other hand, the stacked spectrum of the quiescent galaxies reveals a clear 4000A break with a possible CaII H+K absorption feature and strong emission lines such as [OII] are absent in the spectrum, confirming the quiescent nature of these galaxies. We then perform detailed spectral analyses of the stacked spectrum, which suggest that these massive quiescent galaxies formed at redshifts between 3 and 4 on a time scale of <~0.5 Gyr. This short formation time scale is not reproduced in recent numerical simulations. We discuss possible mechanisms for how these galaxies form 10^11 Msun stellar mass on a short time scale and become red and quiescent by z=2.